Why rest reawakens creativity, according to Manila Illustrator Fair
I’ve been meaning to touch grass lately.
Resting doesn’t come naturally to me, being a busy bee buzzing around for opportunities. In fact, I’ve built quite a reputation for being a workaholic. So it took me by surprise when that moment of clarity finally arrived at this year’s Manila Illustrator Fair.
There I was, umbrella in hand outside the UP Diliman Fine Arts Gallery, while Aly Kangleon, one of the event’s speakers, gave a botany crash course on the surrounding foliage.
“It’s a fun, sensorial experience,” she quipped, before having to cut the nature walk short and retreating inside due to the intensifying downpour. We tried.
Rain or shine, MIF 2025 brought together a myriad of creatives from Sept. 12 to 14 for its third year. With a curated selection of 30 local and international artists and an eclectic roster of speakers, the event stood as a proud declaration of the illustration community’s spirit.
Passion seemed to encase every corner of the gallery. Strangers stopped to fill up the interactive mural on one side while others gushed over the featured creations throughout the venue. As I perused the booths in awe of the works displayed, I overheard a literature-major-turned-lawyer earnestly tell a vendor how she, once a “burnt-out artist,” now delights in supporting the craft.
Eager to soak in all of MIF, I also slipped into the basic zine workshop. Artist Pepe Reyes layered history with humor as he walked us through the art of zine-making, then opened the floor for us to make our own.
Ripping up magazines and sticking big, chunky letters onto my folded sheets of paper reinvigorated my uninhibited, childlike sense of wonder. It was equally inspiring to watch what other participants came up with in the time we were given. Some were as silly as ranking odd numbers from least to most favorite, while others probed deeper themes like hope.
The art form piqued my interest, but it was Pepe’s intention behind it that resonated the most. Creating for him is intrinsic to the human experience, and zine-making is an invitation to tap into that proclivity. “If birds fly (and) fish swim, then humans create,” he expressed. “You’re a person. You can make a zine.”
That inherent desire to create rippled through every speaker, including Soleil Ignacio, who recounted the spaces that shaped her practice. From building her Sims house as an adolescent to her three-month trip to New York City, each creative venture served as a stepping stone into the multidisciplinary artist she is today. “Kung anong interests ko at the time, lumalabas siya sa works ko,” she said.
However, it was the nature she encountered when she picked up surfing in 2017 that imbued new depth into her illustrations. When I asked about the significance of plant motifs in her work, she replied, “Just by looking at nature, it relaxes you. Mapapaisip ka to slow down. Appreciate life.” Even the floral arrangements at Flower Ranch Cafe/Saglit, which Soleil owns, have an inexplicable way of uplifting her mood.
Soleil lets herself explore new hobbies, thus discovering new facets of herself. “Since I’ve been doing (illustrations) for more than 10 years, I realized it’s not all about work. I learned to slow down. To listen to what my body or mind needs.”
Raxenne Mariquiz and Aly Kangleon, who hosted a workshop on drawing flora, share that same perspective. Though the nature walk planned didn’t fully come to fruition, the duo enthralled the room with laughter and botanical lessons.
As color pencils touched paper, Raxenne encouraged the attendees, particularly beginners, not to be intimidated by drawing. Instead, they should lean into the curiosity of the unknown. “Literally touch grass,” she advised. “What I was doing when I started was so different from what I’m doing now. Go outside, but also have interests outside of what you’re doing. All these things that you consume will affect how you work and how you produce work.”
The two emphasized that much of art comes from surprise—the creative tension between knowing and not knowing. Of everything covered, though, it was Aly’s offhand remark during the tutorial that seeped into my subconscious. “The rewards of curiosity are a way of seeing and approaching things with a sense of wonder. Hindi lang sa halaman. It can be rocks too (because) all these are reminders that we are still alive. That we are still here.”
Society often demands that we prove our worth, especially as creatives, but MIF underscored the importance of not letting achievements eviscerate us from living. Stepping out into nature, reading a book, or even pausing to relish every day’s quiet wonders enrich both our work and our very being.
In Aly’s words, “The work you do is reflective of the life you live,” and I want to be remembered for savoring the little joys, not for working myself to exhaustion. Because when I allow myself the space to touch grass and simply be, art blooms.
